On the inconclusiveness of “crucial” cognitive tests of dissonance versus self-perception theories

Several recent experiments are claimed to have tested conflicting predictions of cognitive dissonance and self-perception theories. It is argued that these claims fail to take into account the capacity of each formulation to account adequately for results “predicted” by the other. This argument is then continued, at a metatheoretical level, to reach the conclusion that the two theories are not capable of producing unequivocally contradictory predictions of cognitive consequences of experimental procedures.     

The relation of esteem and social class to self-occupational congruence

The relation of self-esteem and social class to congruence with chosen occupation (the incorporation score) was analyzed by ANOVA and a priori contrasts. Fifty-four accounting majors were differentiated from 58 non-accounting, business majors on the basis of their ideal-self-accounting congruence (p < .01) and their self-accountant congruence (p < .05). Both high- and low-esteem accounting majors' congruence scores for accountant were higher than other S's accountant congruence, and high-esteem accounting majors had the highest congruence (p <.05). Working class accounting majors had higher congruence than middle class accounting students (p <.05). The implications of the findings for theory development and counseling were discussed.     

Second-order conditioning of Pavlovian conditioned inhibition

Two experiments are reported which investigated the conditioning of inhibition to a neutral stimulus as a result of its repeated pairing with a previouslyconditioned inhibitor. Both experiments employed a conditioned suppression technique with rat subjects. Experiment 1 detected the second-order inhibition through the retarded acquisition of concurrently administered excitatory conditioning. Experiment 2 found similar retardation in the acquisition of excitatory fear conditioning following previous second-order conditioning of inhibition to the stimulus. Implications are discussed for theories of the nature of inhibition and for second-order conditioning as an assessment technique.     

Effects of uncertainty,delay, and focus of attention on reactions to an aversive situation

The hypotheses of informational cognitive control, based on the idea that being able to predict the occurrence of an unpleasant event facilitates a reduction of its impact, has not received clear support in previous research. The present experiment investigated the effects of three variables on subjective reactions to mild electric shock: (1) temporal uncertainty about when the shocks would occur, (2) the period of delay before the shock, and (3) attention to either the sensory properties of the shocks or emotional reactions to them. The results showed that low temporal uncertainty and short periods of delay led to reduced anxiety during the period preceding the shock but did not reduce the reported intensity of the shocks themselves. Higher ratings of both shock intensity and distress were obtained when the focus of attention was on the sensory properties of the stimuli rather than on the affective reactions to them. It was concluded that (i) the attentional focus of the subject is an important determinant of rated stimulus effects, and (ii) prediction, though it may reduce prestimulus anxiety, has no real effect on the impact of the stimulus itself.     

Density,perceived choice,and response to controllable and uncontrollable outcomes

Two experiments were designed to consider the effects of chronic high residential density on responses to choice and controllable and uncontrollable outcomes. In the first study, children responded to obtain candy as reinforcement and, during certain phases of the procedure, were able to select a schedule, if they chose, which allowed them to pick their own candy rather than having the experimenter select candy for them. Children who lived in high residential density were significantly less likely than children from less dense homes to try to control the administration of available outcomes. In the second study, children were preexposed to a solvable or unsolvable cognitive learning task and tested for how well they subsequently learned a solvable problem. Children from high density homes did significantly more poorly than less crowded children when the first problem was unsolvable. It was suggested that chronic density limits prediction and control in the home environment and consequently leads to the development of decreased expectancies for contingency between response and outcome in other control-relevant situations.     

Behavior therapy for obesity: Booster sessions and long-term maintenance of weight loss

Following 8 weekly sessions of group behavioral self-control treatment, 75 obese women were assigned to one of five different maintenance conditions: (a) structured behavioral booster sessions held every two weeks; (b) structured behavioral booster sessions held every month; (c) unstructured nonspecific booster sessions held every two weeks; (d) unstructured nonspecific booster sessions held every month; and (e) a control group that received no booster sessions. Follow-ups were conducted at 3, 6, 9 and 12 month intervals. The study was completed in two replications. Results failed to show a significant effect of either booster session content or frequency. All groups continued to lose weight during the first three months of follow-up. Thereafter subjects in Replication 1 showed significant increases in weight over the next 9 months, whereas subjects in Replication 2 maintained their treatment-produced weight loss. The data do not support the view that booster sessions facilitate maintenance.     

The efficacy of progressive relaxation in systematic desensitization and a proposal for an alternative competitive response--the relaxation response.

The theoretical basis of systematic desensitization is reciprocal inhibition in which an alternative, competitive response to anxiety is conditioned to arousal-producing, phobic stimuli. Abbreviated training in progressive relaxation is believed to serve as a competitive response to anxiety by decreasing autonomic nervous system activity. However, physiologic studies of progressive relaxation have not substantiated that its practice is associated with such decreased autonomic activity. Consequently, the use of progressive relaxation has been a confounding factor in the determination of the function of reciprocal inhibition in systematic desensitization. To confirm and refine the theoretical constructs of reciprocal inhibition, it is necessary to test the effects of a response which is competitive to the anxiety response. Such a response may be the relaxation response which is characterized by physiologic changes consistent with decreased autonomic nervous system activity. Derived from meditational practices, techniques which ehcit the relaxation response incorporate the element of focused attention which has been implicated as a critical factor in systematic desensitization. Thus, the use of the relaxation response should be a more appropriate method than progressive relaxation if the therapeutic usefulness of systematic desensitization is indeed due to reciprocal inhibition.     

Construct validation of the dependency and self-criticism scales of the depressive experiences questionnaire

S. J. Blatt (Psychoanalytic Study of the Child, 1974, 29, 107–157) distinguished between two types of depressive experiences, one characterized by strong dependency needs and the other by self-criticism and guilt. This paper reports a series of validation studies of the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ), which was developed to measure individuals' vulnerabilities to these types of experiences (S. J. Blatt, J. P. D'Afflitti, & D. M. Quinlan, Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 1976, 85, 383–389). The Dependency and Self-Criticism scales were shown to be stable in the face of both a 13-week interval and the receipt of midterm grades. Dependency was associated with conflict concerning the expression of hostility and, in males, feelings of helplessness. Self-Criticism was associated with low self-esteem and high levels of morality-conscience guilt. In a study of behavior in dyadic problem-solving tasks, Dependency in males was found to be negatively related to task leadership, and Self-Criticism in females tended to be negatively related to judged likeability. On the other hand, little support was found for the hypotheses that Dependency would be related to field dependent cognitive style and to the use of primitive defense mechanisms. The results were viewed as supporting the utility of Blatt's distinction between the two types of depression, but a number of anomalous findings indicated a need for further study of the DEQ. The question of the developmental level of the two types of depression, possible sex differences in the correlates of the scales, and the possibility of situational specificity in individuals' responses were identified as the areas most in need of study.